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10 Notable Catholic Converts

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10 Notable Catholic Converts

By: John Seiler

Summary: Of the great converts to the Catholic Faith, here are 10
notable ones that should be better known.

The following are 10 Catholic converts who led heroic
lives for our faith.

1. St. Edmund Campion was a promising young
scholar at Oxford University at a time when Catholics
were severely persecuted in England. In 1571, Campion
left for Catholic France so he could avoid persecution
and convert. He became a Jesuit
priest and was sent back to England to give the
sacraments to the underground Catholics. He was
captured, tortured and martyred 1581.

2. Johann Christian Bach was the son of the
better known composer Johann Sebastian Bach. After
converting, J.C. Bach wrote numerous beautiful works
still performed today, including two Catholic Masses,
and was a major influence on the great Wolfgang
Amadeus Mozart.

3. Maurice Baring was an Englishman and friend
of G.K. Chesterton and Hilaire Belloc. A highly
talented linguist who easily picked up new languages,
Baring wrote interesting books about his travels, in
particular to Russia. He joined the Royal Flying Corps
and fought for the British in World War I, later
writing, "Flying Corps Headquarters 1914-1918." He
wrote that his conversion to the Catholic Faith in
1909 was "the only action in my life which I am quite
certain I have never regretted."

4. Msgr. Robert Hugh Benson, after converting,
became a Catholic priest in 1904. Before dying young
at 42 in 1914, he wrote 40 books, including "The
Religion of the Plain Man." His best known work today
is "Lord of This World," a novel about the
Antichrist and End Times. He predicted world wars,
including aerial bombing of cities.

5. Orestes Brownson was a nationally known
American writer before becoming a Catholic in 1844. He
changed the tone of
apologetics for the Catholic Faith in this country
from being defense, to being positive. According to
the 1911 Catholic Encyclopedia, "But Brownson resolved
to stand erect; let his tone be firm and manly, his
voice clear and distinct, his speech strong and
decided. So well did he carry out this resolution, and
so able and intrepid an advocate did he prove in
defense of the Faith, that he merited a letter of
approbation and encouragement from the Bishops of the
United States assembled in Plenary Council at
Baltimore, in May, 1849, and from Pope Pius IX, in
April, 1854."

6. John Dryden, one of the greatest English
poets, converted to the Catholic Faith in 1686. [Wiki:
One of his works "celebrates his conversion to Roman
Catholicism."]

7. Cardinal Henry Edward Manning converted in 1851.
After being ordained a Catholic priest, his talents
were recognized, and he quickly rose in positions in
the church, appointed Archbishop of Westminster in
1865, and cardinal in 1875. He was highly influential
and a favorite of the great Pope Pius IX. His views on
social issues were taken up by the encyclical "Rerum
Novarum," by the next
pope, Leo XIII. Both
socialism and completely uncontrolled capitalism were
condemned, while private property was strongly
endorsed. His book, "Sin and Its Consequences,"
remains in print.

8. Israel Zolli was the chief rabbi of
Rome
when he converted in 1945 and took the baptismal name
Eugenio Maria, after the given name of Pope Pius XII,
Eugenio Maria Pacelli. Zolli converted after a vision
of
Jesus. He strongly defended Pius XII for saving
many Jews from the Holocaust.

9. Knute Rockne was the coach of the great Notre
Dame football teams of the 1920's and 30's. He converted
to the Catholic Faith in 1925. He is best known today
for his 1928 halftime speech in a game against Army,
"Win one for the Gipper." The Gipper was George Gipp,
a great player who died in 1920, later played by
Ronald Reagan in the 1940 film, "Knute Rockne, All
American."

10. After being widowed, St. Elizabeth Ann Seton
became a Catholic in 1805. Despite ongoing
persecution of the Catholic faith, she established the
first free Catholic school in America and a
religious community, the Sisters of Charity. According
to the 1911 Catholic Encyclopedia, "Against her will,
and despite the fact that she had also to care for her
children, Mrs. Seton was elected superior. Many joined
the community; Mother Seton's daughter, Anna, died
during her novitiate (12 March, 1812), but had been
permitted to pronounce her vows on her death-bed.
Mother Seton and the eighteen sisters made their vows
on 19 July, 1813...

"Mother Seton had great facility in writing. Besides
the translation of many ascetical French works
(including the life of Saint Vincent de Paul, and of
Mlle. Le Gras) for her community she has left copious
diaries and correspondence that show a soul all on
fire with the love of God and zeal for souls."

Signature:John Seiler

John Seiler wrote editorials for The Orange County Register for 29
years. He now writes freelance. Email: writejohnseiler(at)gmail(dot)com

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